Blister packs are frequently used in the pharmaceutical industry for the packaging of medications. A plurality of pockets, into which products such as sugar-coated pills or tablets are introduced, are first formed in a film web. After the pockets have been filled, the film web is sealed with a lidding foil and then sent to a stamping station, in which the individual blister packs are stamped out from the film web.
In another phase of the packaging process, the stamped-out blister packs are transferred to a conveying means by the use of a transfer device. The blister packs are placed in individual receptacles of the conveying means to form stacks. Then the stacks of blister packs arranged on the conveying means are sent to a packaging station, where the stacks of blister packs are introduced into appropriate packaging such as folding boxes. The time which the transfer device requires to transfer blister packs from the stamping station to the conveying means logically has an influence on the throughput of the overall packaging machine.